Red Lanterns: Atrocities

The Reds look for Rankorr's Ring signature and find their teammate in another planet. However he is chained and mindless. Atrocitus made him go crazy again. Supergirl is aghast at it, wondering if any of them can get changed back and what kind of being is Atrocitus to do something like that to one p

Contents

Synopsis

The Reds look for Rankorr's Ring signature and find their teammate in another planet. However he is chained and mindless. Atrocitus made him go crazy again. Supergirl is aghast at it, wondering if any of them can get changed back and what kind of being is Atrocitus to do something like that to one person.

Bleez releases Rankorr but he cannot be reasoned with and fights them all. The Reds manage to take Rankorr down and look to take him back to Ysmault, hoping the lake will help bring him back. When they return, though, they find the place in ruins. Atrocitus came over, poisoned the Lake, and razed the place to the ground as they were away.

Guy realizes Atrocitus has formally declared war, and he decides to draw Kara aside. He tells her she must leave the Reds and find her way rather than staying there and get killed when fighting Atrocitus. His words make Kara angry, but she also feels torn. Her teammates have helped her deal with her anger issues and she likes them. She doesn't want to go... but she doesn't truly want to stay and be a Red forever. Guy insists that she is strong enough to find her way alone and be better than all of them. He manages to talk Kara into leaving, giving her the coordinates for Mogo and telling her to go Hal Jordan in order to find a way to remove her Ring.

After Kara leaves, Guy decides it is time to take Atrocitus down once and for all.

A short while after, Guy and John Stewart meet up in an alien bar. Guy opens up and admits leading the Reds is getting overwhelming. Atrocitus is tearing everything down and tearing his Corps apart.

On Ysmault, Zox and Skallox are searching all Sectors for Atrocitus, but the Kaalvar's scans don't pick anything up. Skallox is angry. He claims they're wasting time and Gardner is leading them into their deaths. However Zilius trusts Guy wholeheartedly. Zilius leaves while Skallox keeps scanning Sector 718, where his Ring found him. He tells someone else he thinks he's found them and he's determined to go and follow the plan through.

Back on Sector 1818, John questions Guy's decision to join the Reds and states rage is an useless, unproductive emotion. Guy argues back that sometimes you have to give vent to your anger in order to move past it, and stages a bar fight to prove his point.

On Ysmault, Rankorr's sanity appears to deteriorate further. Meanwhile, Skallox is reaching planet Styge Prime where he turned Red. He finds Atrocitus has built a new Battery Power and another Blood Lake right before Atrocitus finds him. Skallox pleads for forgiveness. Atrocitus derides him for it, but believes he can use him.

After the bar brawl, Guy asks John for help to fight Atrocitus, but John is sure that the Green Lantern Corps will refuse to get involved in the wars between the Reds unless Atrocitus takes Sector 2814. Maybe if Guy came back to the Greens... but the Reds are Guy's partners now, and he won't leave them.

On Styge Prime, Atrocitus makes hundreds of new Red Rings before he and his Reds make their way to Earth. First of all, Atrocitus demands to know where is the place Guy Gardner calls "home". Skallox blurts out "Baltimore", and Atrocitus sends Dex-Starr and two other Reds out. The three Reds level several cities and monuments and Atrocitus decides it's time for the next step. One of his Reds vomits one thousand new Rings that proceed to select new bearers. As the planet descends into chaos and madness, Atrocitus waits for Guy.

The Kaalvar heads to Earth at full throttle. Guy sees what Atrocitus has done to his homeworld and he's madder than ever; but he has a plan.

Meanwhile, Skallox asks permission to seek someone who may be an asset out. Atrocitus wonders whether his former soldier is plotting a betrayal, but he doesn't care what Skallox does, so Atrocitus lets him go down.

On Earth, the heroes are trying to handle the situation. Guy arrives in Gotham and asks Batman to get in touch with everyone and tell them they must keep the Reds contained, but not hurting them. He assures he has this mess under control, although Batman doubts Guy himself believes it.

On New York, Supergirl -no longer a Red- is already endeavoring to keep the Reds from hurting other people and themselves. Guy Gardner runs into Supergirl as she is trying to reach a Red out. He's happy to see her, and asks how she got her Ring off and survived. Kara answers she let everything go.[1] Guy is hesitant to ask her help, but she's happy to join the fight.

Zilius Zox has flown the Kaalvar to Styge Prime and found Atrocitus' new Blood Lake. He proceeds to blast the place. Barg -the Kaalvar's former owner- sees his former ship and is determined to take it back. He communicates with Rankorr, who was apparently putting on a crazy act, and sends him the override code to open his cell.

In the meantime, Bleez has gone to the Kormoraki, whose planet was saved by the Reds,[2]-[3] and called in a favor. The Kormoraki bathe the planet with a sort of calming ray, temporarily soothing the Reds. Atrocitus sees this, and he attacks and tears apart the ship.

On Styge Prime, Rankorr sets the Kaalvar's weaponry to self-destruct and gives Zilius a death blow.

Atrocitus has captured Bleez. He mocks her, but she isn't frightened or impressed. Guy Gardner and Supergirl come along, and Atrocitus quickly runs away. Guy, Bleez and Supergirl get to save the Kormoraki ship rather than chasing him down because they know he isn't going anywhere.

Rankorr was being controlled by a centipede-like Red that Atrocitus put inside him. When his parasite hurts Zilius, Rankorr gets angry enough to break the mind-control off, and then he spits the bug-like Red and kills it. Rankorr attempts to apologise, but Zilius tells him to leave him and fly back to Earth. Afterwards, Ziliius crashes the Kaalvar into the Blood Lake.

Guy, Bleez and Kara have saved the Kormoraki ship, and the shoothing beam is still firing, but they need to get the new Reds off the surface. Aided by her teammates, Bleez uses Blood Magic to try to control and call up as many Reds as she can. Atrocitus does the same thing on the other side of the planet.

Seven Reds have answered Bleez's summons. The rest of them have sided with Atrocitus.

Guy Gardner, Bleez and Supergirl are swarmed by a legion of Red Lanterns. Guy asks Kara help him and Bleez get past the mob and stay on Earth helping calm the new Reds down. Kara is worried about her friends but she agrees to Guy's plan. Supergirl knocks down a wave of Reds with a super-powerful clap, and Guy and Bleez fly off.

Skallox has returned to Styge Prime and met Rankorr, who tells him Zox has died. Skallox is severely upset, but before he can dwell on it, he gets a call from Guy. Skallox apologises for failing his undercover mission. Guy plays it down and tells him to stay hidden while he and Bleez go to Ysmault to fight Atrocitus for the last time.

Guy and Bleez make their way to Ysmault and head into a net of caves under the wrecked Battery. Guy tries to talk Bleez into running away but she refuses to. They're found by Sheko, who is still unwilling to fight for or against them.

Atrocitus arrives and sends his Red army after Guy. Skallox, Rankorr and a third Red Skallox is infuatuated with turn up and strike Atrocitus fom behind. Enraged, Atrocitus fights them and chokes Skallox to death. Dex-Starr attacks Rankorr but gets squashed by Bleez. She and Guy have gotten out of the caves and reunite with their teammates.

All of sudden, Sheko decides to judge Guy. She finds him not guilty. However she finds the human Reds and herself guilty. She blows herself up and the explosion knocks the whole Red army out. Swiftly, Guy Rankorr and Bleez gather the human Reds up and put them in a safe place.

Guy takes his Ring off. But instead of flying back to Atrocitus, the Ring goes back to Guy. Guy attracts several more rings, crushes Atrocitus and removes his second Ring. Guy absorbs all red Rings and dumps them in the Blood Lake, which comes back to life.

Guy tells Rankorr to take Atrocitus and his goons and turn them over to John Stewart. Guy trusts John to put Atrocitus away and get the humans cured and back to Earth.

He also entrusts Rankorr with the Corps' leadership and the protection of Sector 2814. Guy decides to leave the Corps and stick to patrol Earth.

Paraphernalia Appearing

Notes

Trivia

At one point, Guy tells Batman he doesn't have time for a fight. Batman replies it'd not take long, only One Punch, and Guy retorts "Not in this universe, pal". This scene is a nod to Justice League #5.